Chickpeas, fresh spinach and sun-dried tomatoes are slowly simmered with garlic, ginger, lemon and coconut milk. The result is one highly-flavorful and satisfying dish.

Serves:
3 to 4

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Active Time:
30 mins

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Total Time:
45 mins

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Success:
93

Step 1: Starting the Dish

1 tbsp coconut oil**

1 yellow onion

4 cloves garlic

1 tbsp fresh ginger

1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes*

1 whole lemon

1/2 tsp chili flakes (or to taste)

2 cups cooked chickpeas (1 - 15 oz can)

Method

To prepare your mise en place, first dice the onion and mince the garlic and ginger. Next, zest the lemon. Juice the lemon and reserve for later. Measure out the sun-dried tomatoes and julienne. *Note: If using sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, make sure to drain them first.

Lastly, drain (if using canned) and measure out the chickpeas. Rinse. Gather the chili flakes and coconut oil. **Note: If desired, omit the oil and dry-sauté the onions with a bit of vegetable stock or water.

To cook the dish, heat a large Dutch oven or deep sauté pan over medium heat and then add the oil, followed by the onions and a good pinch of salt. Let the onions sweat for about 10 minutes or until translucent (in this case, a bit of color is fine). Once soft, add the garlic and ginger and let cook for another minute or so. Add the sun-dried tomatoes, lemon zest and chili flakes. Let cook for another minute or so.

Next, add the chickpeas and stir to coat in the tomato mixture. At this point, turn up the heat slightly and sort of fry the chickpeas a bit. Keep an eye on them though so they don’t scorch. You just want them to have a little color. This should only take a few minutes.

Step 2: Adding the Spinach

1/2 lb fresh spinach*

Method

Once the chickpeas are heated through, turn the heat down slightly and start to add the spinach, a handful at a time.

*Note: If using baby spinach you can add it as is. If you are using regular spinach, you will need to chop or tear it up a bit.

Once the first bunch of spinach has started to wilt, add in the next handful. Continue until all of the spinach has been added.

Step 3: Finishing the Dish

1 - 14 oz can coconut milk

sea salt, to taste

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 tsp ground ginger

1/2 bunch cilantro (to garnish)

Method

To finish the dish, add the coconut milk and bring to a simmer. Stir to combine and then add the ground ginger and a bit of the reserved lemon juice. Taste for seasoning. Add more lemon juice, salt and/or pepper as needed.

Once everything has heated through, serve immediately. The spinach will start to lose its color and it won’t look as nice. Serve it with brown rice or any grain of your choice. Garnish each plate with a healthy serving of fresh cilantro and enjoy!

Chef's Notes

by Dawn Thomas

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June 20, 2018

You can add additional spices to this dish. For instance, if you are in the mood for curry flavors, try adding 1 to 2 teaspoons of curry powder or a nice masala mix. When adding spices, add them after the ginger and garlic. For added texture, you could also add ingredients such as water chestnuts or nuts at the end. Feel free to experiment to see what delicious combinations you come up with.